U.S. Salmon Aquaculture: Ethical Issues in Farmed Salmon
Kimberly Jones
Troy University
Dr. Miller
Abstract
There are many ethical arguments surrounding aquaculture. The salmon industry in the United States has many ethical concerns in relation to farmed salmon. This paper will first discuss the salmon industry, then discuss specific ethical issues facing farmed salmon, and finally review any laws, regulations or relief efforts in place to reduce these ethical concerns, or that aggravate these concerns.
Keywords: aquaculture, ethics, genetically modified organisms, GMOs, salmon
U.S. Aquaculture: Ethical Issues in Farmed Salmon
Animal agriculture has been utilized for thousands of years to provide human beings with dependable sources
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Palm oil harvest often leads to deforestation of the rainforests, and raises many ethical concerns from the public, (Levitt, 2015).
Harm to Wild Salmon Populations.
When fish like salmon are farmed, often the fish are still kept in the ocean; however, they live inside of nets so that they are still contained. There are many ethical arguments based around these net systems because these nets pose threats to wild salmon. Captive salmon can escape from the nets, which allows them to breed with wild salmon. This can disrupt the natural gene pool of wild salmon. Farmed salmon have been shown to outgrow wild salmon when introduced into the wild, and typically have higher mortality rates, which would be poor traits to be introduced into the wild gene pool, (Hindar, et al., 2006). Unfortunately, with the invasive farmed salmon being introduced to wild populations from escapees of net systems, the recovery of the original wild salmon is unlikely, even if decades went by without more intrusive farmed salmon being present, (Hindar, et al., 2006). Another problem is that the nets do not contain wastes from the captive salmon inside, wastes such as uneaten feed, and feces from the fish are dispersed into the open waters of the ocean. Wild salmon can contract infections and parasites from captive farmed salmon in nets. A study indicated that these parasites, such as sea lice, and infections lead to high mortality rates in wild salmon passing near
The orangutan, one of the world’s great apes, resides on the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Borneo. The forests of these islands are being destroyed in order to create palm oil plantations. Palm oil is in high demand due to its uses as a biofuel and as a vegetable oil. The palm oil industry is a major threat to the survival of the critically endangered orangutans, due to loss of habitat. This leads to illegal poaching since the orangutans are viewed as pests, leaving many young infants orphaned and alone. There are rescue groups that rehabilitate these great apes, but more must be done in order to prevent the extinction of this rapidly declining species. Sustainable palm oil options need to be researched and utilized and there should
There are many risks associated with eating farm-raised salmon versus wild- caught salmon. One risk that farm raised salmon faces is contaminants that can lead to cancer. Farm raised salmon are placed in artificially made bodies of water such as ponds, lakes, and salt water and within these bodies of water, contaminants such as PCBs can be present. Cancer causing chemicals can be present in both the water, farm-raised salmon swims in, and the food they eat. Another risk with farm-raised salmon is the use of antibiotics in order to keep the fish healthy. This unknown amount of antibiotics used on the fish can lead to a resistance to the antibiotic used to kill the bacteria’s in both human and the salmon. The humans that are consuming the fish that possess these antibiotics are unintentionally
For over one hundred years the salmon population in the Columbia Basin has been drastically decreasing, due to overfishing and man made obstacles. The Columbia Basin Fish Accords have given a one billion dollar grant to tribes and states for habitat restoration projects. However, the conflict still rages between the native tribes of the area, and the federal government whose roadblocks such as dams prohibit the free flowing rivers that bring salmon back to the spawning grounds. The effort to keep salmon coming back up the river while keeping the dams intact is the struggle that the federal grant hopes to solve.
The first Pacific salmon hatchery was constructed on the McCloud river in California in 1872, and its purpose was to produce Chinook salmon eggs that would be distributed far and wide, starting a practice of introducing non-native fish for human enjoyment and consumption that has proven very destructive, both to populations of salmon and other fish species (Maynard and Trial 2013). During this time the main goal of hatcheries was to produce as many salmon as possible, regardless of the carrying-capacity of the effected stream, a practice that was largely motivated by the canning industries who benefitted significantly from increased salmon production. During this period, the natural environments that shaped the development of each salmon run were not only seen as unimportant, but actually detrimental to salmon-production (Maynard and Trial 2013). Current research makes it clear that these factors, which early hatchery managers saw as detrimental, are in fact key to healthy salmon
According to the anthropologist Professor Henry Bunn of Wisconsin University the use of animals for food dates back to two million years ago, when, “our human ancestors were small brained ape-men” (McKie, 2012). The use of animals for a source of food, clothing, and even entertainment is not something new to us. But what is fairly new are the animal rights movement groups as well as legislation that have formed in the last century to protect the rights of animals and preventing animal cruelty in slaughter. There are specific movements and laws such as the 1958 Humane Methods of Slaughter Act and the 2015
This article took a very extensive and narrow look at the peril of wild caught salmon versus farmed salmon. The detail heavy paper was well thought out as the author pointed out the issues but then provided ways to fix these issues. The marketing of quality over quantity for the wild salmon fisheries of Bristol Bay has been at the forefront of changing sustainability issues for a declining salmon population (Hébert 2010). The rise in fish prices could be seen as a direct reflection of tapping into a quality market by wild salmon fisheries. Farmed salmon is a lower quality therefore they make up for quality in quantity, however the influx of farmed salmon did effect the market price for fish, so the wild salmon fisheries had to come up with
One of the most commonly shared beliefs about aquaculture is that it has potential to amplify and transfer disease/parasites to wild fish populations, but strict management practices and guidelines have been utilized and supplemented to ensure that US farming operations mitigate current and potential environmental risks associated with aquaculture (NOAA, 2015). Among these practices are regular diver-led inspections to investigate the integrity of nets and net infrastructure, surveillance cameras and even public webcam feeds that monitor the fish farms and in particular monitor efficient use of feed, regular health inspections in efforts to have a head start on disease prevention and detection, and “comprehensive sanitary and biosecurity programs to prevent the introduction and/or spread of pests or diseases from one farm site/cage to another or into the environment.” (NOAA, 2015). Additionally, movements are being made to stop the spreading of disease and to limit oceanic pollution by containing salmon in solid tanks rather than in netting. “In Washington State, Domsea Farms has launched a land-based, freshwater system to produce coho salmon.” (David Suzuki Foundation, n.d.) This method is not only environmentally sound, but it opens up aquacultural boundaries. By containing fish in these large tanks, there is potential for salmon aquaculture to
Palm oil is a lucrative business that generates billions of dollars a year. It is
There is an abundance of atrocities facing the modern world that we live in, but one of the most important and critically pressing of these atrocities is often overlooked. The very ecosystems and resources that we rely so heavily on for the success of our global economies are being exploited at a rate that will have catastrophic consequences on the future of our economic success, as well as drive a large portion of the worlds biodiversity into extinction. Among the most prevalent case of environmental degradation and biodiversity loss includes the rapid deforestation and loss of biodiversity that is caused by the production of palm oil in the South Asian countries Indonesia and Malaysia. Many may argue that this rapid deforestation is simply due to the rapidly growing global population, whereas many others view this issue as the effect of greed and consumerism that surrounds a capitalistic market. The production of this forest risk commodity is responsible for the absurd rate of deforestation in Indonesia and Malaysia, has a profoundly negative effect on the biodiversity located in Indonesia and Malaysia, and can best be explained from a political economy standpoint.
In the last two decades, palm oil has been one of the most imported goods around the world. In fact, the top industries are located in Sumatra, Indonesia, holding up to 90% of the world’s exported palm oil. Palm oil comes from the palm fruit of the African oil palm trees, and is grown mainly in the rainforest area. Unfortunately, the actions taken to grow these trees are causing horrible impacts to the world’s environment, such as deforestation, pollution, and increased greenhouse-gas emissions. Between 1985 and 2011, more than 30 million acres of the Sumatran forest disappeared because of the involvement of palm oil. Because of these environmental impacts, it’s leading to animal cruelty, especially for the Sumatran tiger. The deforestation of palm oil is driving Sumatran tigers toward extinction, because of the endangered wildlife environment, hazardous plantations, and starvation. According to One Green Planet, at least 80% of the Sumatran wildlife habitat is lost from the production of palm oil leading to the extinction of the Sumatran tigers. In 2017, it has been recorded that their are fewer than 400 Sumatran tigers that exist (How Palm Oil Impacts the Sumatran Tiger).
Global production and demand for palm oil is increasing rapidly. Plantations are spreading across Asia, Africa and Latin America. But this expansion comes at the expense of tropical forests which form habitats for many endangered species and support local families and communities.
Environmental organizations like Greenpeace and World Wildlife Fund have admitted that finding an alternative crop is not a practical solution and instead advocate for industry reforms. In the meantime, palm oil production is laying waste to the environment. Despite the environmental impact, the Indonesian government plans to convert 45 million acres of rainforest into palm oil plantations by 2020. The tropical nation has already allowed the deforestation of 25 million acres of peat lands to make room for palm oil
Accounting for 11% of Indonesia’s export earnings, palm oil is the most valuable agricultural export. Creating many environmental problems, including globally, cultivating large quantities of palm involves clearing substantial areas of virgin tropical rain forest. Additionally, local communities, indigenous people, and small landowners are driven from their own land. Leading to more than 700 land conflicts, human rights violations are increasingly breached, even on ‘sustainable’ plantations. Palm oil companies are regulated by the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), however, corruption and illegal practice are widely identified.
Additionally, Palm Oil is highly productive, meaning it is capable of yielding more oil from less land than any other vegetable oil on the market and with relatively modest efforts. As a result, palm oil production has become an important source of income and a major part of the economy in the regions where it is grown, providing livelihoods for local communities and helping to bring people out of poverty. Since 1980, palm oil production has increased drastically with estimations of production increasing by 50% through 2050. It is estimated that there are 13-14 million hectares of palm oil plantations across the equator, producing a total of 56.2 million tonnes of palm oil in 2013. This land coverage provides 35% of the global vegetable oil
Issue- Palm oil is one of the world's most popular edible vegetable oil. Palm oil is used in most goods available at your local supermarket. This particular oil is affordable but it comes at an immense cost to our environment. Palm oil has been connected to many human rights, animal, and environmental violations yet organisations and companies all over the world persist in using this particular oil in just about everything, in fact this popular oil is in about half of all products on store shelves. Including products like soap, snacks, laundry detergent, cosmetics, and even ice-cream.